The para-triathlete was on hand to witness the unveiling of the first Paralympic plaque on Wollongong's now renamed Olympians and Paralympians Wall.

It was a move a long-time coming, the wall originally established in the lead up to the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

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Goerlach started a campaign to have para-athletes recognised alongside their able-bodied peers after returning home from last year's Tokyo Games.

Now, he is one of nine Paralympians to feature on the monument.

"It's unreal," Goerlach said. "I don't think there's any other tribute wall for Paralympians and Olympians in Australia. Just to have that alone in this region is amazing.

"Now to have Paralympians alongside Olympians is great recognition. To have my name on there alongside some incredible athletes is humbling."

Alongside Goerlach are fellow Tokyo Paralympians Victoria Davies, Jasmine Greenwood, Tristan Knowles, Dave Mainwaring, Amanda Reid and Brett Stibners. Beijing Winter Paralympians Melissa Perrine and Sam Tait have also had their names added.

Goerlach praised Wollongong Council and the Illawarra Olympic and Paralympic Fundraising Committee for supporting the initiative.

It's a change the region's Olympians have embraced, the athletes thrilled to share the limelight.

"They deserve the recognition," Emma McKeon said. "It's very special knowing we're all from Wollongong and we've all achieved great things. To be on the wall together is a special thing."

Able-bodied athletes have spoken of the way the wall has inspired them to pursue their Olympic dreams.

Now, para-athletes will have that same opportunity, with Goerlach confident the number of names on the monument will only multiply in years to come.

"For the younger generation, some of them don't have a voice," Goerlach said. "They might not do sport for these accolades, but when they have similar or better achievements than we have, to get their names up on a wall like this is something they'll look back on fondly.

"Prior to today, Paralympians in this region haven't been recognised alongside our Olympic counterparts. It's something that's going to grow, we're going to have so many athletes recognised."

With the region's most recent Paralympians officially recognised, the task of filling all the way back to 1960 is next on the agenda.

It won't happen overnight, but Goerlach is confident every Illawarra Paralympian will be able to find their name on the wall in the future.

"We've started to research and locate all past Paralympians from the area," Goerlach said.

"It's going to take time, but Paralympics Australia are super keen to help with the process. Hopefully we can get it happening and get all Paralympians from 1960 onwards on that wall as soon as possible so they can be recognised."

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